Chernobyl

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Chernobyl (Chornobyl) City on the River Pripyat River, n central Ukraine. It is 20km (12mi) from the Chernobyl power plant. On April 26, 1986, an explosion in one of the plant's reactors released eight tonnes of radioactive material into the atmosphere. Within the first few hours, 31 people died. Fallout spread across e and n Europe, contaminating agricultural produce. The long-term effects of contamination are inconclusive, but 25,000 local inhabitants have died prematurely. Two of the three remaining reactors were reworking by the end of 1986. In 1991 Ukraine pledged to shut down the plant, but energy needs dictated its continued output. With aid from the West, the plant finally closed in December 2000.

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